TAIF, 22 October 2004 — The injustice of unpaid salaries continues unabated despite the Labor Ministry’s efforts to stop the malpractice of employers.
More than 150 security guards gathered in front of the Water and Sewerage Department on Tuesday protesting non-payment of salaries for 2-3 months.
In a phone call to Arab News, Umm Mohammad, the wife of one of the protesters said: “These people have no conscience and don’t fear God! It’s Ramadan, we have children. My husband has borrowed from family and friends to make ends meet. What are we supposed to do? Beg for what is ours?”
According to Okaz newspaper the protesters are employed at a private security company to guard the city’s water tanks. They demanded that they be paid their back wages quickly. According to the employees the company has continuously delayed payment despite protests by the staff.
A week ago the executive director promised to pay them their unpaid salaries but when they went to his office on the due date and time they found it closed.
The employees found no other course of action to resort to but to gather and protest at the Water and Sewerage Department to draw attention to their situation. Police patrols arrived at the site, calmed the crowd and took them to Al-Salama police station for further investigation.
Earlier this month, the Labor Ministry took action against Saudi companies and individual employers for mistreating workers and not paying their salaries. Consequently, the guilty parties were banned from recruiting foreign workers for five years.
On behalf of the labor minister, the deputy minister for labor affairs stated that “The Labor Ministry will continue to prevent individuals and companies which mistreat their workers or fail to pay their dues.” The ministry had taken action against four Saudi employers who had not paid the salaries of their domestic workers and had failed to respond to the Labor Office’s call to resolve the dispute. “The problem isn’t that there aren’t any laws or lawmakers,” said Abu Hamad, one of the protesters. “The crisis is that there aren’t any law enforcers.”
In July 30, 2004, in Madinah, more than 50 security guards at King Fahd Hospital went on strike because the company owed them several months’ salaries. The dispute was reason for physical assault between the employees and their supervisor, reported Okaz.
On Aug. 1, 2004 more than 11 employees nearly ended up in the streets with their families because their company failed to pay their salaries for more than 10 months.
“We don’t need more meetings. We don’t need more laws. We need people with live consciences that know that God isn’t just in the mosques” said Abdulmajeed, the cousin of one of the protesters. “Laws are useless if there isn’t someone holding these criminal people accountable and action is not taken. Earning one’s daily bread isn’t something to be meddled with. These are people’s lives!”
